Black Truth News: A lot of older people I know, claim they don’t listen to hip hop anymore. Do you still rock out with hip hop? If so, who do you listen to?
JAZ-O: I do. I don’t really rock with the artist though, somebody ask me that earlier this week. They ask me about different artists, to be honest; I don’t like a certain artist. You know I may know some personally but as an artist, I don’t really like or dislike an artist. I like songs, because you got people that do one song, and that’s it.
Black Truth News: But from your era, there were a lot of dope albums. No favorite albums?
JAZ-O: I hear what you saying, but even back then with albums. I still just rock with particular songs, as far as really getting into artists. I mean really talking outside of hip hop for me; one of my favorites is Donnie Hathaway, Marvin Gaye, and Roberta Flack. I’m into that. As far as hip hop, and today’s artists, there are some songs that I dig. But I’m going, to be honest with you. I hear it by accident. Cause I really don’t listen to the radio. So many people listen to music around me. You know I’m getting around to hearing at least what’s current. And then as an artist, I really like listening to many things because I feel it might influence what I do; and I kind of pride myself on being original and ahead of the game on certain things.
You know I introduce the triple style to the game and were talking about it before ’88. You know situations like that; I don’t run away from the music. Basically, to hear everything current, you know far as the older crowd not being into it, I think it’s their responsibility. I mean the internet is wide open, and you got to dig for it, it’s not that it’s gone, or like Nas said, ‘Hip Hop is Dead,’ it’s just not mainstream. It’s now coded as underground, and mainstream hip hop is what I like to call Rap, the basic 808. And some of it I love, and some of it, I think is trash.
Just like some of the shit back in the day was trash. It’s funny how people hear a joint from back in the day, something that was trash back in the day. But when they hear it now, all of sudden, it sounds good. But the reality of it is, it’s still garbage, it’s just how you feel about music. It’s ok, I don’t judge anyway. I just think that is incumbent for the people that grew up with the music, to go look for it. You ain’t got to listen to the same thing over and over. There is some progressive hip-hop out there.
Black Truth News: Well one of your tags is the originator. Explain to people how important is to be original in hip hop; Also any advice for an artist, who is coming up, or trying to do what you have already done?
JAZ-O: Firstly the mess-up thing about it is that it’s not that important to be original. The pattern started in the 90s, that’s when most of these artists felt like they couldn’t get a break. So they start sounding like the most prevalent artist. Take Rakim for instance, when he came out, everyone wanted to be like him. They wanted to be deep, they wanted to drop science; so it’s more of the same now, it’s just more ridiculous, and it’s just not with the lyrics, it’s with the production. Everybody is talking about cars; everybody is a hustler or a pimp. Everybody’s the same thing. If you heard one song, then you heard the other two or hundred songs.
So the importance of being original is not there. Right now, it’s about finances. That’s the game, it’s political now. As an artist, I would say it’s important to be original but to be successful in this industry; all you have to do is follow the pattern.
Black Truth News: Tell people how they can find you?
JAZ-O: Basically I have an EP coming out, called “Warm Up”. You can holler at me on Twitter @ Jazo9xsgreat
This Article Appeared in The Black Truth News Volume 3 Issue 12.0 Dec. 31, 2013